1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to identification systems and, more particularly, to an identification system for distinguishing among individual containers, such as individual drinking containers or individual containers of a consumer package of products.
2. Background Information
Containers of products for consumer use, such as food and beverage containers, have been packaged in sets having four, six or even more containers. Usually, each container is identical to the others of the set with each container displaying thereon identical indicia over a major portion of the container. This indicia not only serves to convey information about the contents of the container, but it also depicts manufacturer and distributor trade information as well as trademark and trade dress configurations, colorations and words. Since each container in a set is virtually identical to the others, distinguishing between each container is almost impossible once the containers are separated from the original packaging arrangement.
Often, at a party or other social setting, mistakes of container identity occur where individuals mistakenly drink or eat from containers which previously had been used by another. For example, many times an individual sets his beverage container down momentarily and returns to it later. Sometimes, that person either becomes unsure where the beverage container was placed, or finds that two or more similar appearing beverage containers have been left in the same area making it difficult to determine which beverage belongs to whom. In general, it is impolite to drink from another person's beverage container, and such often results in squabbles about whose beverage container belongs to whom. Additionally, picking-up and drinking another person's beverage can pose a risk of exposure to any contagious medical condition that the other person may have. In this regard, modern medicine and most informed people generally recognize the desirability of not drinking or eating from another person's beverage or food container. This is particularly important because of the widespread presence of germs and other contagion, including AIDS, Hepatitis A, B, C, G and the like, cold sores (Herpes), and flu viruses. Thus, without means for identifying individual containers taken from a consumer pack, social occasions and even family gatherings can be dampened by the nagging fear of whether the opened consumer food or beverage container just picked up and eaten or drunk from was the same one just recently laid down.
Moreover, disposable drinking cups are extremely popular for the convenience they offer in situations in which large numbers of people are served. As is well known, disposable cups are offered by manufacturers in plastic or paper, and are available in plain, unadorned form, in colors, or with decorative designs. Disposable cups are typically purchased in bulk, and in the usual case, all of the cups in a given package are similar, if not identical, in appearance. Again, this leads to the situation in which the drinks of individual users, when put down momentarily, cannot be distinguished from one another. Thus, individuals often cannot identify their own drinks and are faced with the choice of drinking from a cup which may have been used by another, or abandoning what may indeed be their own drink. When such confusion of one drink for another occurs, the results are unsanitary and potentially injurious to health. On the other hand, when one unnecessarily abandons a cup because it cannot positively be identified, the result is wasteful and uneconomical.
Although some prior patents have discussed ways for identifying containers of food and beverage products, it is believed they are limited by either their complexity and expense, or their appearance and impracticality. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,908,877 granted to Kosisky, it was proposed to provide a circular tray having circumferentially spaced openings marked with the names of individual users. Cups, also bearing the names of the individual users, are associated with the openings. Such an arrangement permits the identification of cups and drinks, but in order for the disclosed technique to work, the cups must be returned to the tray. U.S. Pat. No. 3,354,564 to Falcone et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 2,976,629 to Brixius et al. disclose identification insignia hanging or secured onto a container by pressure clips or other means. This approach is burdensome and detracts from the overall trade dress of the container. Likewise, using large, non-similar labels to identify different containers not only deemphasizes the manufacturer's and distributor's trademark and trade dress but it also obscures the important container content and labeling information usually mandated by governmental regulations.
Other types of personal identification of food and beverage containers have been proposed, illustrative of which are the proposals of U.S. Pat. No. 2,024,889 granted to A. Simeone; U.S. Pat. No. 3,392,468 granted to David Wolf; U.S. Pat. No. 3,974,916 granted to Edgar O. Artolucci; U.S. Pat. No. 4,203,240 granted to George I. Goodwin; U.S. Pat. No. 4,347,804 granted to Antony-Euclid C. Villa-Real; U.S. Pat. No. 4,759,139 granted to M. David Ricks; U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,457 granted to Donald O. Chandler; U.S. Pat. No. 5,492,077 granted to Howard L. Rose; U.S. Pat. No. 5,799,815 granted to Micheal A. Lang; U.S. Pat. No. 5,839,581 granted to Douglas Vagedes; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,845,777 granted to Boman K. Najmi. Although such proposals have addressed selected problems encountered in providing personal identification for containers of alimentary products (e.g., food and beverages), there have continued to be certain drawbacks to their use. Thus, for a variety of reasons such as cost or cumbersomeness in use, they have not found popular expression in the marketplace.
Accordingly, there has continued to be a need for improved identification devices and systems for food and beverage containers that are simple, inexpensive, and easy to use and prevent inadvertent drinking or eating from the wrong container, particularly where a number of individuals are using containers having the same general appearance.